The rumored "blade battery" has finally surfaced.
Recently, the official website of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology announced the latest batch of new energy vehicle promotion catalogs (hereinafter referred to as the "catalogue"), among which the BYD brand 7009BEV1 pure electric sedan produced by BYD Automobile Industry Co., Ltd. is among them, and according to Reporters from the First Automobile Channel have verified through multiple sources that this car is the first BYD Han EV pure electric sedan equipped with a "blade battery".
Previously, during the China Electric Vehicles 100 People Forum (2020), BYD Chairman Wang Chuanfu revealed that BYD "Han" will be the world's first model equipped with "blade batteries", which is expected to be launched in June this year. Listed on month.
According to the catalog, Han EV models are available in single-motor and dual-motor versions depending on configuration. The dual-motor version has a maximum NEDC operating range of 605 kilometers, and its applicable battery system energy density is It is 140Wh/kg, which is slightly lower than the NCM811 (high nickel battery) previously released by CATL and put into production last year. The highest package energy density reaches 180Wh/kg, and is also lower than the mainstream overseas batteries such as LG Chem and Panasonic Electric. The manufacturer's main products have a maximum system energy density of 150~180Wh/kg.
BYD has always been self-sufficient in the supply of power batteries for new energy vehicles, so its battery shipments have been surpassed by CATL. In 2018, CATL’s battery shipments were twice that of BYD. Currently, the gap between the two has further widened. As a result, the "blade battery" is expected to become an important weapon for BYD to catch up with its competitors.
According to BYD's official information and related patents, the so-called blade battery is actually a large battery cell with a length greater than 0.6m developed by BYD, which is arranged together in an array, like a "blade battery". "A battery design process that is also inserted into the battery pack, hence the name "blade battery". Wang Chuanfu once revealed that the new generation of "blade batteries" by flattening the battery cells can not only increase the energy density per unit volume by 50% compared with traditional lithium iron batteries, but also enable the vehicle battery life to last 8 years and more than 1.2 million kilometers. , and plans to increase the unit energy density to 180Wh/kg and the system energy density to 160Wh/kg in the next two years, thereby reducing unit production costs by 30.
"Blade batteries" are being controversial. Judging from the current energy density data, blade battery values ??are somewhat different from the combination of the "NCM811" battery pack and CTP (cells directly integrated into the battery pack) technology promoted by CATL and other companies. Does this mean that the “blade battery” that was once widely rumored in the industry is inferior to competing products?
Yu Qingjiao, secretary-general of the Zhongguancun New Battery Technology Innovation Alliance, told a reporter from the First Auto Channel that this needs to be considered from the different technical methods of the two companies. At present, most mainstream battery factories use the "ternary "Lithium battery", while BYD's "blade battery" is a lithium iron phosphate battery. The materials of the two are completely different, and their characteristics are also different.
Yu Qingjiao said that overall, lithium phosphate batteries were used more frequently in the early stages of electric vehicle promotion. They have the characteristics of lower cost and longer life, and due to the out-of-control temperature of lithium phosphate batteries, It is higher, so the safety performance at the material level is higher, and it is currently mainly used in commercial vehicles with complex use environments; while ternary lithium batteries have an advantage in energy density. In addition, in recent years, Japanese and Korean power battery companies have competed for the Chinese market. This has led to increased pressure on domestic power battery companies, so efforts to make up for their own disadvantages between the two different technical routes are also continuing.
According to data from the China Chemical and Physical Power Supply Industry Association, the current price of domestic ternary lithium battery cells is about 0.9 yuan/Wh, and that of lithium iron phosphate batteries is about 0.7 yuan/Wh. According to Data from power battery market research organization SNEResearch shows that the cost per kilowatt-hour of square batteries from LG Chem and SKI is about 10% lower than the cost of local Chinese companies.
To this end, CATL launched CTP (battery cells directly integrated into the battery pack) technology at the 2019 Frankfurt Auto Show, which eliminates the module assembly link. The goal is to increase the energy density by 10 to 15%, and the cost is expected to be reduced by about 30%.
Automotive industry analyst Zhang Qiang believes that in the current market context of significant decline in subsidies, cost has naturally become a topic that major car companies must consider. This can be achieved by reducing battery production costs and increasing energy density and There are two ways to increase the value of its products through cruising range. According to the goals given by BYD and CATL, both companies have given a cost reduction goal of 30%. The value of BYD's blade battery lies in increasing the cruising range of cars equipped with lithium iron phosphate batteries to that of ternary lithium batteries. The level of competition, which mainly relies on the flat battery pack design through blades, allows more blade batteries to be stuffed into the battery pack.
Regarding the above-mentioned energy density controversy, Zhao Changjiang, general manager of BYD Sales Company, posted on his social networking site that the GCTP (cell to battery pack) technology used in the blade battery has improved the inheritance efficiency and eliminated the need for technology. Multiple software and hardware processes are eliminated, so the cost savings can be more optimistic, which may also lead to a further improvement in the cost performance of Han EV.
However, Zhang Qiang also believes that for blade batteries, in addition to solving the energy density test, there are no mature cases as a reference in terms of product design and safety. In addition, the current use temperature range of lithium iron phosphate batteries is relatively low, for example, the low temperature limit is only minus 20 degrees, which means that in the winter in the northern region, the applicable range of this car is strictly limited, which is very difficult for a car. This is a flaw for cars operating in a complex environment like China.
In addition, Liu Taigang, deputy director of the GAC New Energy Technology Center, said that currently, both CATL and BYD are under greater pressure from foreign-funded power battery companies such as the LG soft pack 590 module supported by the Volkswagen MEB platform. Large, especially the 590 soft package module represented by LG Chem, which has a relatively high technical process difficulty. Take the Aion? LX launched by GAC New Energy as an example. The 590 module it is equipped with can achieve a maximum system energy density of 180Wh/kg. The high degree of integration of the group has reduced the unit cost, which is currently not fully achieved by domestic power battery companies.
Liu Taigang believes that both the integrated mode of blade batteries and the CTP of CATL are two different technical methods for highly integrated modules. At present, both technical routes need to go a long way. Gotta go.
This article comes from the author of Autohome Chejiahao and does not represent the views and positions of Autohome.